Delhi was gripped by panic as over 40 schools received bomb threats via an email on Monday, demanding a ransom of $30,000. While investigations are underway, schools have been evacuated and students have been sent home.

The threat email said, "I planted multiple bombs (lead azide, explosive compound used in detonators) inside the building. The bombs are small and hidden very well. It will not cause very much damage to the building, but many people will be injured when the bombs detonate. You all deserve to suffer and lose limbs. If I do not receive USD 30,000, I will detonate the bombs.”

This is similar to how 100 schools in Delhi and Noida received bomb threats email in May 01, 2024. Around 5 Jaipur schools had also received a similar threat on May 13, 2024. 

While it’s understandable for parents to panic, it is very important that the child is handled with care at a sensitive time like this. Every child has a different disposition. Some children are calm in a situation like this, some may get anxious as they get to know more. Some are curious as well as anxious. You know your child the best, so your response and support for your child can also be according to your child’s temperament. Also, be mindful of aspects like recent trauma or a recent loss of a dear one. In case the child has experienced anything distressing recently, something like a bomb threat in the school can really stress the child out. 

A child’s response to a stresser or a danger comes from what they see around them, especially the way the adults behave in such situations. The child learns to cope in such situations from the way their parents do. So, in that sense a parents’ response to such situations can shape up the coping mechanism of the child for life. I am not saying that as a parent you can’t have anxious moments. You can, but it’s about how you cope with that moment, which needs to be your focus as a parent in such situations for yourself and your family’s well being. 

Here are a few pointers to help parents deal with such a situation. Most of these pointers are keeping in mind a child of under 7 years of age. 

1. Manage Your Own Response To Such Situations

Avoid speaking over calls or with a person in front of your child if you are having an anxious moment. Stay calm. Choose your response wisely. Children pick on their parents’ emotions quickly. In case you’re having an anxious moment and your child is also there, you can share that you feel concerned/worried too, and then go on to share how you manage such situations, stay calm, build an understanding that we are fine and then choose to focus on your time together and what are the activities/good things you and your child can do today at home to feel better. 

2. Media For Adults Is Not Right For A Child

Protect your child from such media consumption. The ability to take stress is very different for a child compared to an adult. Avoid playing audio/video content with distressing messaging if your child is in the vicinity. Monitor their social media usage since they may also be exposed to posts on the same topic on these platforms.

3. Nothing Is More Assuring Than A Parent’s Validation

Your child trusts you the most. Remember to listen to them first and try and understand how they are feeling more than the choice of their words. Their anxiety will quell down, if they feel heard by you. Sometimes adults can try to talk the child out of speaking about negative feelings. But we need to understand that not talking about it is not going to change how they are feeling about it. Let them speak please, listen to them. Once they feel listened to, you can then validate and acknowledge their feelings and then go on to share coping skills. Please remember to assure them that it’s going to be ok. Hugs work wonderfully well. 

4. Talk In A Language Your Child Understands

Once you have ensured that your child is protected from media and the floating information, you can now tailor the communication to being child right. Start by asking what your child knows already. Understand their misconceptions, focus on how they are feeling and then address the gaps one by one. Choose age appropriate information and frame it for your child to comprehend. Do not hide the information from them, they will find out eventually. Instead choose to explain them in their language. For e.g. In case your child is looking worried or asks about what’s happening, why is school not working today, hear them out first. pls do not interrupt them while they are sharing. Once you have understood how they are feeling, choose an appropriate first action, could be a hug, holding their hands, sitting closely depending on how they are feeling. Now, choose how you want to frame your communication. For e.g. I also feel concerned about the situation. The school is taking precautions for safety and so they have announced a holiday today and have informed all the parents to give them time before they are ready again to get all the children back. So, we shall wait till they get back to us. Once they are ready again, you and your friends shall go to school.

Child psychologist, Richa Aggarwal says, "basically the thing is we want to make them think that they are safe, we want them to not give any unnecessary information, instead we should keep our explanation brief and simple as young children have very limited understanding of these complex issues."

5. Get Back To The Daily Routine

A child thinks of a danger differently. S/he may feel that her World is going to change for the worse. You can address that proactively by keeping the child on their daily normal routine. This helps the child be in a safe space. Sleep, play, read, write, eat routines are great. Timely sleep can be a great calming down factor in such situations. See if your child and their friends can do a play date in case the situation goes on for more than a day. 

6. Avoid Distracting With Screen Time

Don’t resort to the screen as a distraction, especially not  in their school routine hours. You can instead get the child engaged with similar activities as they do in the school like writing, reading, crafts, quiz sheets, similar other read/write kind of activities. 

7. Reassurance From You Will Work Wonders

You don’t have to make any false promises. You don’t have to say things like, this just happened once, won’t happen again. Instead, you can choose to tell your child that you are there with them and you would protect them. Richa adds, "we should emphasize more on the safety than we should maintain calm and whatever we are telling our children, it should be in a reassuring tone because children can pick up on parents' anxiety very easily, redirect the child's attention to something positive they can do at home that day. The main goal here is to address the children's natural curiosity without causing undue stress or fear. With patience and care, you can help the child feel secure even when unexpected events occur."